When Ino saw Hinata wipe out all the reinforcements in one go, she looked awkwardly at Shikamaru. "Shikamaru, um... do we still need to go ahead with the plan?"
Shikamaru sighed softly, his feelings in turmoil. His teammates were too powerful for his intelligence to be of any use. In a situation like this, either Obito Uchiha or Hinata could conquer the Bloodkill Principality alone. For the first time in his life, Shikamaru wondered whether the intelligence he had always prided himself on was useful at all.
Shikamaru shook his head and said dejectedly, "No. Hinata can handle it alone."
Obito Uchiha seemed to see what was troubling him and smiled. "Heh, Shikamaru, although I don't know exactly what you're thinking, I can tell you this: your intelligence matters. It really does. Without your arrangements, even if we conquered the Bloodkill Principality, we'd be left with a country in ruins. That would be very bad for Konoha's future development. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses, and your intelligence is exactly what we need."
"Strengths and weaknesses?" Shikamaru murmured. "Maybe."
Obito Uchiha said, "Konoha already has plenty of powerful Ninja. Naruto, Sasuke, Itachi, my teacher, Kakashi, Guy, Hinata Hyuga, the Fifth Hokage... in terms of powerful Ninja alone, Konoha already surpasses the other four great Shinobi Villages. But we have very few wise strategists. I hope you can understand yourself clearly. You shouldn't aim to become a powerhouse like me, Naruto, or Kakashi, but a wise strategist like your father, Shikaku Nara. My teacher once told me that what Konoha needs most is no longer powerful fighters, because we already have so many. What we need most are wise people like your father, who understand both military and political affairs."
Shikamaru paused in surprise. "Someone who understands both military and political affairs?"